Inorganic Chemistry focused Personal statement/ PHD Program

Hello,

This is my personal statement that I intend to use for application for PHD programs. I am afraid I focused too heavily on my research experience and not enough on myself. Thanks for the help.

Through my undergraduate career I have grown as both a student and researcher. I came to my university knowing that I wanted to pursue a doctorate in chemistry, however I was unsure of what specialty I wished to pursue. Through my years I found my passion in Inorganic chemistry and wish to further pursue that in a doctorate program. I want to then move to a post doctorate position, finally becoming a researching professor in my field. I have grown a strong set of basic skills at my university and wish to learn and grow throughout my graduate career and well beyond.

Through my University I have had a wonderful opportunity to explore chemistry to the fullest through many different research experiences. Not knowing what area of chemistry I wanted to focus on I decided to use my time in college to explore the vast specialties within chemistry. I started research for Professor Guogong Du the spring of my sophomore year doing organometallic chemistry research. This included the synthesis of organic ligands and the addition of metals to create a catalyst. This This research started as a for credit position and turned into a paid summer position. This lab experience gave me a range of strong skills and a taste of laboratory technique outside of class required lab exercises. My day to day duties included the preparation and testing of NMR samples through liquid chromatography, and a wide range of experiments in both organic and organometallic preparation. I was trained on the usage of our Bruker NMR and given an account on the machine. The topic of publication was the synthesis of a ligand and the insertion of a ruthenium into the ligand. This was then used for a wide range of reduction applications, such as the reduction of aldehydes, ketones, and amides.

In the spring of my junior year I was allowed a opportunity in a cross collaboration project between the Chemistry department and the Economics department. This was a paid position under Professor Rick Chu of the Chemistry department and Harry Tsang of the University Economics department. The project was determining whether a carbon dioxide capture project would be viable on an industrial scale and if not how could it be improved to make the process viable. This process involved research in both chemistry and economics to come to a conclusion. After the conclusion was reached that the process was not viable I was asked to look into other processes and chemicals that would be more suitable for our needs. . This last portion involved researching the unique properties of each chemical, ordering, testing, and characterization of numerous amine groups. This included using a NMR machine as well as a scanning electron microscope. Since this research is ongoing no publications have been made on it however the topic is the synthesis of polymer using carbon dioxide captured from the air.

As a graduation requirement I have enrolled in a senior research for credit class. I chose to work with Professor Lothar stahl doing research in inorganic chemistry. I had taken a class from Professor Stahl my freshman year of college and he had mentioned some parts of his research involving crystal structure. I was intrigued by this but never had an opportunity to pursue it until this research was made available. This research is where I found my true passion in chemistry. Not having any experience in this area of research I worked closely with Professor Stahl and his graduate student to learn as much as possible on the subject including the proper usage of a schlenk line system. In this lab I concreted my skills using an NMR machine as well as learning X-ray diffraction techniques. Due to the air free requirements of this research I was trained to use schlenk lines and an air free environment box. This research is ongoing and will culminate with an ACS styled paper turned in to my department as part of the course's requirements.

After I decided to attend graduate school I asked several of my professors for advice as to which college to attend. They strongly recommended INSERT as they did their post doctorate work at your university. They told me that your graduate studies would be strongly aligned with the research and focus within inorganic chemistry that's is currently being researched by INSERT AND INSERT. I feel that by being able to work with and under them I would be able to reach my full potential of becoming a doctor of chemistry and finally a professor.

By INSERT I plan to insert the name of the University and a few professors I have researched there. Thank you.

Yes, I feel you need to talk a little about yourself; talk about how your passion for chemistry developed, what influenced you pursuing your major, your background... :)


I entered the university knowing that I would end up pursuing a doctorate in Chemistry though I was not sure of the field that I would want to specialize.


.... I think all these descriptions are not really necessary.


I developed a many skills during my undergraduate and graduate studies.

I think you need to improve the presentation of your PS. Start with some experience that reflects how your passion developed. Then talk about how you pursued your passion. Talk about your research experience. Then tell them what your future goals are. Don't be too descriptive when telling just one idea. :)